Jaime Lujan in ‘WHITE MUSCLE DADDY’,  Photo by Jeremy Mimnagh

“Things were better before the gym.” This throwaway line from a character who has succumbed to a lifestyle that skews his moral compass—or, perhaps, just reveals its true alignment—is more significant than even he realizes. At his new attendant’s job at a swanky LA gym, awkward Jeremy (Jaime Lujan) becomes obsessed with a sexy and enigmatic client, fitness influencer Eugene (Ray Jacildo). As he lusts over this ripped idol, it causes a rift between him and current partner, the feisty and attentive Gustavo (Frankie Bayley).

Contentious beauty standards, racial fetishization, kinky shenanigans and horror film tropes are mashed together in this very ambitious theatre-film hybrid. Presented by Pencil Kit Productions and Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, WHITE MUSCLE DADDY is a queer horror-comedy that offers plenty of flash and sizzle in its erotic, technical and stylistic flourishes. Directors Tricia Hagoriles and Raf Antonio have nailed the aesthetics of low budget exploitation cinema with their inventive use of live-streamed horror scenarios projected onto panel screens. Continue Reading